Spotlight:

Prime Algarve Residential Market

Prime Algarve Residential Market

The Prime Algarve is part of a network of internationally invested destinations that are behaving quite unlike the nations in which they are located. While Portugal’s national housing market is seeing tentative improvement, the Prime Algarve has outperformed in recent years. This is in line with the recovery in the countries from which most of the Algarve source buyers are derived, most notably the UK.

The renewed rise of the Prime Algarve comes as many wealthy individuals find themselves fully invested in ‘first-tier city’ property. In the years following the global financial crisis, cross-border wealth and other investment focused on the prime core of established world cities, seeking safe havens in times of economic uncertainty. In the most heavily invested cities like Hong Kong, London and Singapore, prime prices have doubled in a decade. The prime markets of these cities are fully taxed and, with prices at a high plateau, buyers are looking at second-tier cities and leisure retreats for capital growth prospects.

The privately owned and managed Algarve resorts of Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo appeal to additional home buyers, as they offer high-quality properties and on-site amenities in a safe and secure environment. Buyers are attracted to the region’s lifestyle and an investment that can both be enjoyed or rented out for part of the year.

Tourism is the underlying fundamental for a second home destination. The Algarve is one of Europe’s most popular tourist regions. Globally, international tourist arrivals grew by 4.4% in 2015 to reach a total of 1.2 billion. Europe led the world with growth of 5%, while Portugal saw growth of 8%. An improving tourist sector bodes well for the Prime Algarve, bringing more prospective buyers, and renters, to the region.

Characterised by low levels of supply and a product tailored to the luxury second home market, the Prime Algarve is positioned to benefit from deepening demand from established source markets in the years to come.